Settling Up
by Buckhunter
Summary: "'Debris from a cannon shot impaled itself in Jack's face. Took out 'is left eye, covers most of that half o' his face.'" The Black Pearl shows up at the Turner household, their captain having taken debris from an explosion to the face. Mild gore warning. Post DMTNT, disregards Carina. Willabeth, with Sparrabeth friendship.


**Summary: The **_**Black Pearl **_**shows up at the Turner household, their captain having taken debris from an explosion to the face. Mild gore warning. Post DMTNT, disregards Carina. Willabeth, with Sparrabeth friendship.**

**Settling Up**

"Scrum, head for shore. Take Marty with ye. Find somewhere ye can ask for supplies. Hurry! Dunno how long the cap'n can hang on like this." Gibbs ordered.

"Aye, sir." Scrum responded, nodding to Marty.

The two men jumped into a longboat that Pintel and Ragetti had prepped for them.

*X*

William Turner opened the door that had been knocked on. His eyebrows rose as he recognized one of the two men standing before him- it was a member of Captain Jack Sparrow's crew.

"What are you doing here?" He asked them.

"Cap'n's injured. We came for medical supplies." The shorter of the two men, Marty, informed him.

"Jack?" He gaped.

"Aye." The second man nodded. "We need to hurry- first mate's worried he won't make it."

"Will?" A familiar voice, the voice of his wife, came from behind him. "Who is it?"

"Elizabeth, grab Henry." Will turned to face her. "Grab the medical bag- Jack's injured."

"Jack Sparrow?" She inquired.

"Do we know another Jack?" He shot back. "Hurry!"

*X*

Gibbs greeted the three Turners upon their boarding. "I'm right glad ye came. Couldn't think o' nowhere else to go where he'd be welcome."

"What happened to him?" Will asked.

"Someone got their hands on the _Queen Anne's Revenge_, someone who shouldn't, that's what." The _Black Pearl_'s first mate explained. "They attacked us. Debris from a cannon shot impaled itself in Jack's face. Hurts 'im a lot."

The couple and their son visibly winced.

"How bad is it?" Elizabeth asked.

"Took out 'is left eye, covers most of that half o' his face." He told them. "Gonna be a frightful mess to remove."

"Can I see him?" Will asked.

"Of the three o' ye, ye'll take it best." Gibbs nodded. "Aye, ye can help us too. The sooner we get 'im cleaned up, the better. Ragetti! Pintel!"

The eldest Turner took the medical bag from his wife and gave her a light kiss. "I'll be back."

He followed the _Pearl_'s first mate into the captain's cabin, aware of the two crewmen behind him. The first thing he made out was the sound of someone squirming and panting- a victim of fever. He was led to a bed in the back corner of the cabin, where the form of a semi-conscious, fever-induced man lay.

Jack Sparrow.

The pirate had been stripped to his trousers to assist the fight with the fever. Sweat coated every inch of visible skin. Dozens of scars riddled his chest, suggesting that he'd had a lot worse than this in the past.

Will moved his gaze to Jack's face, wincing at what he saw. A large, splintered chunk of wood stuck up from the left side of his face, where his eye should have been. Blood crusted around it, more drying pools of it covering his face. His right eye was shut, though twitching as his eye moved underneath it.

"Jack?" The former captain of the _Flying Dutchman _whispered tentatively.

The pirate's eye shot open, shifting around, clearly unfocused. His blood-stained lips curled up as he recognized him. "William." His voice was hoarse, weak. "Ye takin' land for granted yet?"

"That's hardly funny, Jack." Will pointed out. "And now's hardly the time for you to make jokes."

"I'm aware, mate. I'm aware." Jack's smirked faded. "Looks bloody awful, doesn't it?"

"Yes. It does." He agreed quietly, before turning to Gibbs. "How deep is it?"

"Had it gone any deeper, it'd 'ave killed 'im instantly." The first mate responded.

"Then he's lucky to still be alive." Turner mused. He glanced back at the pirate captain. "Jack, I'm going to need you to relax. This is going to hurt _really _badly."

"I'd be surprised if it didn't."

"Gibbs, Pintel, Ragetti, I'm going to need you to restrain him while I do this. I don't need to get hit by a stray arm or leg and make it worse for him."

"Ye can count on us to help." Gibbs assured him with a firm nod.

"Good." Will glanced at them. "Take up your positions."

Pintel and Ragetti each pinned down one of Jack's arms, while Gibbs took his legs. The former captain of the _Dutchman _glanced at the pirate to see that his jaw had clenched tightly in preparation for the extra burst of pain.

He wrapped his hands around the wood, searching for a secure grip. He found one, but hesitated. "Ready, Jack?"

"Do it." The pirate captain ordered gruffly.

Will nodded to the others, signaling them to get a tighter grip on Jack's limbs. They did. He heaved a sigh, preparing himself for hearing his friend's screams and seeing the damage inflicted to his face. _This is it. Hold tight, Jack._

He began to pull to the debris, trying not to inflict extra damage. He heard a low growl start in the other man's throat, alerting him that he was extracting the wood much too slowly. He gave it a sudden jerk and it came flying toward him, free of the pirate's body. Jack gave a quick cry of pain, good eye squeezing shut as his limbs tugged in the grasps of the other men. He stilled, panting weakly.

Will placed the wood on a bedside table, turning back to Jack. The left side of the pirate's face was a raw, bloody hole of flesh. Blood pooled in it quickly and he reached for the medical bag. He took a rag from it, gesturing for the other men to release the pirate captain's limbs, which they did.

"Hold this to your face." He ordered, handing it to him. "Keep it there until it stops bleeding."

Jack obeyed, too out of it to protest. Will lifted the pirate's upper body into a sitting position, resting him against the headboard. Blood overflowed his lips, streaming down his chin and dripping onto him. He didn't react to it, chest heaving as he fought to catch his breath. The wind seemed to have been knocked out of him.

"Are you alright?" Will asked him.

He received a low grunt in response.

"I need words, Jack."

Jack's eye opened and slowly trailed up to the other man's face. "I'm tired." He finally told him quietly. "But I'll live."

"Good." Will let his body relax. "Stay awake. I'll need to clean and close the wound when it's stopped bleeding."

"Aye, I know." The pirate licked his blood stained lips, swallowing. He glanced to his first mate. "Good thinkin', Master Gibbs."

The elderly man gave a half grimace, half smile. "I figured there was no one better suited for the job, Cap'n."

"Right ye were, mate." Jack gave a small nod, glancing back to Will. "How are your dear Elizabeth an' Henry doin'?"

"They're doing fine. They're outside, on deck." The eldest Turner told him. "You know, I told him not to go looking for you."

The pirate failed to suppress a laugh. "Doesn't listen very well, does he?"

"He prefers to stick with what he believes is right." He responded defensively. "It's just...he'll go at any length to ensure it."

The other man gave him a knowing look. "Awfully like his parents, that one."

Will allowed a grateful smile to spread across his face. "Thank you, Jack. For saving my life and for saving me from the _Dutchman_'s curse."

"Ye only owe me one, now that ye've jus' saved me." Jack pointed out.

The former captain of the _Dutchman _gave a light huff of amusement.

*X*

Will, Jack, and the other three men emerged onto deck some time later, after the pirate captain's wound had been successfully stitched. The sun was low in the sky, signaling the end of another day.

Jack found himself leaning against the portside railing, gazing out at it. He sighed. He could hear the crew murmuring to themselves, the Turners exchanging words too. He ran a hand over the left side of his face, shaking his head. _I'll never get used to this._

Someone called his name and he turned to his right slightly, catching sight of Elizabeth Turner in his eye. He jerked his head for her to join him, turning back to the sunset. He saw her lean against the rail beside him.

"How bad was it?" She asked quietly.

"Let's jus' say that I'd had died, had your dearly beloved William not come." He answered.

"And Will wouldn't have come if you hadn't helped Henry save him." She pointed out in return.

He snorted. "Oh, he'd 'ave come...to ferry me soul."

Elizabeth sighed in exasperation. "The point is, Jack, thank you for saving Will."

"Ye're welcome." Jack finally answered. "When ye're ready to go to shore, tell Gibbs I order him to row ye. I'd do it meself, but I don't 'ave the strength to do it jus' yet."

"Where is the _Pearl _going after this?"

"We'll go wherever the sea takes us. I'll teach meself to fight with one eye an' overcome me injury. It'll be fine."

"Will you come to visit sometime? You're welcome here, you know." She offered.

He turned to face her, shrugging. "We'll see, love. I usually bring trouble wherever I go, though, ye should know that. Might be best I stay away."

In turn, Elizabeth faced him, rolling her eyes. She seemed indifferent to the fact that his face would forever be missing an eye. "Jack, an adventure or two here and there won't kill us."

Jack sighed in defeat, a smirk curling his lips upward. "Very well then. We'll stop by soon, take me word for it."


End file.
